real reporting from around the world. this is what we do. al jazeera america. ♪ former israeli prime minister ariel sharon is being laid to rest and a monster by some and loved by others will have a full funeral. they are putting finishing touches on a historic agreement with iran and agreed to freeze much of the program in exchange for limited relief from economic sanctions. bringing bangkok to a stand still, thousands of protesters taking to the streets of thailand, protesting upcoming elections and calling for the prime minister to resign and a-rod swinging back at the

critics and alex rodriguez plan to fight the year-long suspension in federal court. ♪ good morning and welcome to al jazeera america. i'm stephanie sy. foreign dignitaries from around the world are in israel today to say farewell to ariel sharon, and the controversial military leader passed away saturday at the age of 85 after 8 years in a coma and honored earlier today in jerusalem during a state ceremony outside the israeli parliament. the memorial was attended by current israeli prime minister netanyahu, a one time foe of sharon and joe biden on hand calling sharon a complex man who put his country first. >> ariel sharon was not only

loved by the jewish people and he not only loved them as the jewish people but he loved the land of israel. >> reporter: sharon's body will then begin a procession from jerusalem to his ranch in southern israel and casket accompanied by 8 defense force general and at 7:00 eastern time, under an hour from now sharon will be buried in a military military setting and mourners have gathered for his funeral and nick, good morning. >> good morning stephanie. you can see behind me where sharon will be buried as you said in just about an hour. from that memorial service you heard so much emotion and so many people thanking this man who more than ever defined the israeli state and defined its borders. you heard from joe biden talking about how sharon loved the land and from the president saying

that sharon cultivated the land and defended it with a sword and gets to the defense of who this man was. it's a very interesting story about how much he loved the land and specifically how much he loved that spot. in 2000 he buried his wife there and no permission to do so and illegal because it was public land and fast forward and he wantses to be buried there and challenged by the party he held found and only then did the israeli state approve not only sharon's burial but retroactively the burial of his wife a few years ago. it goes to show how sharon lived his life. he took land that israel seized in 1967 and believed the land was his to take. afterwards the state or military or an institution he was part of said it's okay, that is our policy and how he lived and clearly how he is dying as well. >> reporter: seems entirely appropriate in an odd way, nick. there was a question about how he got a hold of this land in

which he will be buried. it's miles from the palestinian town of tibia destroyed by troops in battle and symbolism there as well. >> yeah, absolutely, look, sharon was polarizing and an under statement and you mentioned that and it's netorious and establishing the reputation for ruthless reprisal. in 1953 a unit of israeli commanders went this there after palestinians living in the village and reportedly killed an israeli woman and children and what they did is absolutely laid seize to the found and by the end they killed 67 civilians and afterward there was no condemnation for israel on sharon and, in fact, the founder of israel and the george washington equivalent of israel gave sharon his name and before that he was known as eric

sneiderman and it's what they believed and the palestinians and israelis may call him a war hero but others would call him a war criminal. >> we will discuss that in depth on the morning show and reporting outside the ranch where sharon will be buried. in 1942 at the age of 13 he joined the under ground military force. six years later in 1968 he fought in the battle for jerusalem under the war of independence and 67 he had an armor division during the six-day war against egypt and syria and sharon and forces surrounded the third army and turned the tide of the fighting. and he was appointed defense minister in 1981. just in time for israel to invade lebanon the following year and found the defense force responsible for a massacre of palestinian civilians and

leading to a reluctant resignation and in 2001 he won a landslide victory for the 11th prime minister. in 2005 he ordered withdraw of the israeli military with settlers from the gaza strip as part of a disengagement plan. in january 2006 and he has been in a coma ever since until saturday when he died. they put the final touches on a temporary deal that freezes much of the nuclear program and here is what the iran agreement entails. starting on january 20 tehran agreed to roll back nuclear production and over six month u.n. will have full access to the nuclear facility. if iran cooperates a permanent deal will be finalized about six months from now. in return iran will get relief from crippling economic

sanctions between $6-$7 billion and patty is in washington d.c. with more on the deal. >> this was the first step taken in november, six countries in iran agreeing to a temporary deal to slow its nuclear program. now the next step. on january 20th iran's leaders say they will take action. on that day they promised to enrich uranium to 5% and dismantle stockpile of enriched uranium and increased inspection and get gold industry and sanctions that kept out parts for cars and airplanes and some overseas account also be unfrozen as well and putting an estimated $6-$7 billion back in the economy. they try to workout a long-term deal but from the powerful to the people on the streets of tehran skepticism about the future. >> translator: it is not easy to be optimistic about this. we should wait and see what

happens, only time will tell whether the talks will finally result in conclusion. >> we are very clear eyed about the even greater challenges that we face in negotiating a comprehensive agreement. we understand, it's going to be a tough negotiation. and we are very clear about what will be required in order to be able to guaranty to the international community that this is a peaceful program. >> reporter: under the agreement the u.s. promised no new sanctions while they talk, and majority of senators say they do not agree with that, threatening to pass a bill to add new sanctions on iran that will be implemented if they feel iran is not living up to their side of the agreement. the white house said it will end the talks and threatening a veto and making sure they can over ride it. the first and second steps taken in the next few weeks, the congress could take a third. but it's one the white house fears would be the last in this

long diplomatic process. patty with al jazeera washington. >> reporter: if iran cooperates the sanction relief money will be paid out in 180-day installments and the first payment of $550 million would be released at the beginning of february. the payments would stop if iran violates the accord and also reports that within the hour the world powers and iran will very likely hold their first meeting to discuss the broader nuclear settlement starting next month. the french military is trying to have a truce in the central african republic and days after the president of the country resigned and went in exile malitia laid down arms and embraced each other and talks aimed at finding a new leader will take place today. they said looting in the capitol left 13 people dead. and mosques and muslim-owned shops and homes were attacked by

christian rebels and stepped up flights for those wanting to leave. rebels fighting each other and syria and says in a week 700 people killed. it's the most serious level of in-fighting syria saw since the civil war began and syrian peace talks will likely move forward later this month but it's still unclear if the rebels will attend. despite pressure from international leaders. meanwhile secretary of state john kerry and russian counterpart are meeting in paris right now and trying to convince the syrian rebels to take part in the geneva talks set to take place in ten days and they insist that will include assad regime and they will decide what iran's role will be in the effort to end the civil war. clashes have broken out in the egyptian capitol days before voters head to the polls. on sunday students supporting

ousted president mohamed morsi battled forces at cairo university and hurled rocks and molotov cocktails and this is days before a planned vote on a draft constitution for the country. five al jazeera journalists are detained and not charged by authorities. producers mohamed fahmy, baher mohamed and peter greste are accused of spreading lies and joining a terrorist group and al jazeera said that is fabricated and is demanding released and two other are from our sister channel and they have been detained for five months. a week of storm and cold a storm is working its way across the country and the forecast and let's bring in dave. >> the storm coming across the country bringing in warm air and the temperatures are climbing a bit today especially in the northeast and it's warming up a bit, the problem is there is

some ice out there forming on a lot of the rivers and that caused some problems so despite the fact there is no rain yet, there is a number of flood warnings in effect and watches and warnings as the ice jams on the river could lead to flooding as the ice melt with temperatures in the 50s. this is the storm we are talking about, northern plains with moisture across the southeast, that is where it is now. the temperatures will continue to climb here if you are in the east coast you see the numbers climbing above 50 for a high temperature today and mild here and 10-15 degrees above average so that is what we can expect today. now this rain will slowly begin to work its way across the mid-atlantic states and there is snow with warm temperatures and this is all rain from the east coast all the way to about ohio by tuesday afternoon and evening. then we bring in the cold air. so a drop in temperatures once this rain clears out, you will certainly feel that on wednesday, not a big polar arctic mass but temperatures will drop when the rain clears

out. no rain in the southwest and needs moisture but not seeing anything with the satellite or the radar and dry weather continues there. again we will keep an eye on the storm in the midwest as the temperatures climb the upper 50s followed by colder air. you will certainly feel that by the middle of the week once the rain clears out, stephanie. >> reporter: thank you, the troubled healthcare.gov website is getting a much-needed reboot, obama administration it has assenture to take over the site and after the contractor cgi will be leaving the project and the launch was widely seen as a flop and leaving hundreds of thousands of users not being able to complete the sign up process. the federal website serves 35 states and the site launched more than two months late and the translations are full of

grammatical mistakes and working to make the site better and plan further improvement soon. chris christie's marathon apology last week has done little to quiet his involvement in the bridge problem. he is unaware of the politically motivated lane closures does not add up and including the men heading up the investigation into so called bridge gate. >> it just strains credibility that they didn't look at those documents and say we ought to let him know about it. >> reporter: impeachment is possible if they can prove christie was involved in the lane closures and coming to christie's defense and new york city mayor guliani say it's not uncommon to be blind sided by scandals. >> something goes wrong and the press asked how do they not know and how do they not realize.

the reality is he says he didn't realize and said he didn't know. i think it's pretty darn credible and wouldn't make a blanket denial unless it's not true. >> reporter: republicans say christie can withstand the scandal and still win support from primary voters in the 2016 presidential race if he decides to run for the white house and he has an early edge on other potential gop candidates. a major mistake for southwest airlines, the flight that landed at the wrong airport and passengers could not take the plane to the right place. thousands of protesters blocking the streets at the capitol in thailand. why crowds want to bring traffic to a halt. holiday shoppers may have been the victims of hackers at more than just target, where else your personal information could have been snatched. >> i'm john henry smith and despite claims made at the center of the bio genesis

scandal alex rodriguez is swinging at the legal system and details ahead. this is a look at the north american auto show which opens today in detroit. ♪ activists show the

♪ good morning and welcome back to al jazeera america, i'm stephanie sy, just ahead a southwest flight lands at the wrong airport, why the passenger plane may be staying there for a while and we will look at temperatures across the nation today and dave warren is back. >> i like to see the warmer temperatures stick around for a while and if you like the warm up and not the cold air and not the case here and starting to see the warm weather to memphis 52 and chicago 40 and the cold air is coming across the northern plains and north dakota and south dakota is seeing numbers begin to drop and it's above the freezing mark in new york and philadelphia is 29 degrees. this is this afternoon and above 50, warmer weather from washington d.c. all the way up to the northeast, and we will stay dry but rain comes in overnight tonight, that is rain

late today or overnight tonight and tomorrow and rain with a temperature of 50 and dropping in the 30s. the cold air comes back, not bitter and arctic frigid air but a drop in temperatures and that is from the cold air coming in the northern plains and eventually wednesday and thursday for the mid-atlantic states. >> reporter: thank you, west virginia's governor says the quality of water there is improving but he did not mention when the strict ban on tap water will be lifted, hundreds of thousands of residents have a fifth day of water restrictions put in place after a chemical spill last week and the spill on the elk river contaminated water in much of the states and schools, restaurant and businesses will remain closed today. over the years a number of i of investigation linked it to issues and counties in west virginia and kentucky where coal

mining, takes place have higher poverty than those that do not, a year later there is health risk with coal mining, regions including problems with babies and birth defects. a report by the "new york times" and the economy from 2011 said coal economies did not pay as much as others in taxes. a plane carrying more than 100 passengers landed on the wrong runway at the wrong airport. a southwest flight out of chicago came dangerously close to sliding off the runway and erica says this is the second time in a few months the plane landed in the wrong place. >> you can feel something was wrong. >> reporter: passenger's instincts were right, the southwest jet did something wrong when it landed in point look out in missouri. >> we hit the runway hard and fast and all the sudden you smelled rubber really strong through the whole cabin and we

looked at each other like something is not right. >> it was a rough landing and all moving close to the seats as we were landing because the runway was too short for the plane and so then they came on and said that we landed at the wrong runway. >> reporter: the wrong runway but 7-miles, the right way where the chicago southwest flight was supposed to land was at the nearby branson and it's longer by 3,000 feet. >> people know we are here. >> reporter: 124 passengers and five crew members were on the plane. no one was hurt. but the plane came close to tumbling off a steep drop off at the end of the runway down an embankment and down to a highway. this is the second plane in just three months to land at the wrong airport. back in november another jumbo jet, a boeing 747 dream lifter headed for an airforce base in

kansas mistakenly landed at a smaller airport nine miles from the base and no one was on board and carrying parts to a facility that makes planes near the base, in that instance the plane was toes to the towed to the beginning of the runway and had space to take off the next day. this plane is far too big to get off the ground on such a small runway. airport officials do not know how they will get the southwest plane to an airport to get back in service. military said in november said they make the mistake at night confusing one runway with another and in both cases the runways were fewer than ten miles apart, erica in new york. >> that smaller airport doesn't normally handle big jets and they launched an investigation in the airport mix up. as for the passengers they took shuttle buses to the right

airport. there are twists and turns rounds the suspension of slugger alex rodriguez this morning and a lot of development over the weekend on this. >> absolutely stephanie and good morning to you by the way. it looks like alex rodriguez is swinging for the fences and today he is expected to file an appeal of his historic 162 game suspension in federal court and despite 162 games is down from the original 211 game suspension baseball wanted to give him thanks to an arbitrator's ruling saturday. the third baseman denies he ever used performance-enhancing drugs during his time in new york but in a 60-minute interview that aired sunday night tony bosch refuted the claims of innocence and bosch said he personally injected rodriguez due to the fact that rodriguez was too scared of needles to do it himself and said alex rodriguez would take testosterone logenzes

called a trokie before games. >> 10-15 minutes before game time he would take it or as soon as he went in the field, a player could take it right before game time and by the time they get back into a locker room, after the game, and there was in i possibility of testing, they would test negative, they would test clean. >> reporter: and bosch also told 60 minutes that, quote, alex cared, alex wanted to know, he would study the product and substances and study the dosages because he wanted to achieve all his human performance or in this case sports performance objectives and the most important one was the 800 home run club, he would be the only member in the club if he reached that level. also appearing in the 60 minute piece was bud and chief operating office and in a

statement the mlbpa said it's unfortunate they lack faith in the arbitrator's decision and the joint drug agreement and could not resist the temptation to pile on against alex rodriguez. it's equally troubling the mlb appointed panel arbitrator will himself be appearing in the 60-minute segments and tony bosch the principal witness is appearing on the program with mlb's blessing unquote, the arbitrator is the afor mentioned. we notified the major baseball league association on numerous occasions we intend to respond to all attacks on integrity of the joint drug program. and it continues yet again yesterday with mr. rodriguez's statement and mr. bosch's appearance he is not controlled by us and entitled to speak however he chooses about his interactions with mr. rodriguez, end quote.

on the field news we turn to football and next week's match-ups are set in afc and tom brady will meet payton manning with a superbowl birth on the line and they are humming early and throwing two touchdown passes and welker back and managed to hold off a late charges and won 24-17 and manning is back in the afc game for if first time in 8 seasons and earlier in the day the 49ers punched their ticket back to a third straight nfc title game with the win in carolina and kapernick to the end zone and pouring on the pepper by having the celebration, 9er's defense never did it himself and sacking him five times and intercepting twice in the debut and they won 23-10. this is how it will shake out

next weekend, new england to denver with 3:00 p.m. kickoff and he is against peyton manning and night cap at 6:30, the 49ers go to seattle to face the rivals for the first time this season and that is sports for now. >> reporter: sam burns story inspired people and suffered from a rare premature aging disease he had since he was born. on friday he died from complications related to the does and one day before he was schedule to be an honor captain at the patriots against the colts on saturday, before the game a moment of silence was held in his honor. a war hero to some and a war criminal to other, the complex life and legacy of israeli prime minister ariel sharon and preparing to move the costa concordia two years after it run

aground and the fall out over food stamps and what effect it's having on small businesses. >> they have threatened our lives, our families' lives, i don't think anyone should be subjected to these e-mails and threats. >> the club has alerted the fbi. samuel said this is probably just a distraction. >> the message is the life of the endangered species is on the line. >> so what is the future? president of the humane seat of the united states join us tonight. i assume its no stretch to assume that your organization would be opposed to this. tell us why? >> well, joie there are many rare species in the world, and

the black rhino is one of the rarest. because of poaching and habitat loss we should do everything we possibly can to protect them. the idea of linking a trophy hunting exercise to conservation may make sense to folks who are involved in trophy hunting, but al jazeera america. we open up your world. >> here on america tonight, an opportunity for all of america to be heard. >> our shows explore the issues that shape our lives. >> new questions are raised about the american intervention. >> from unexpected viewpoints to live changing innovations, dollars and cents to powerful storytelling. >> we are at a tipping point in america's history! >> al jazeera america. there's more to it.

♪ welcome back to al jazeera america, i'm stephanie sy. israelis are paying their final respects to former prime minister ariel sharon this morning, he was honored earlier today in jerusalem during a state ceremony outside of parliament and foreign dignitaries from around the world attended including joe biden and british prime minister tony blair. >> in a close-knit country like israel, a country that has been tested as much as israel, loses a man like prime minister sharon, it doesn't just feel like the loss of a leader. it feels like a death in the

family. >> reporter: the controversial military and political leader passed away saturday at the age of 85 after 8 years in a coma. sharon's body will be taken from jerusalem where he will be buried in a military-style ceremony and we are joined by the editor of the the uk telegraph and author of the edge of war and joins us from london this morning. sir, thank you very being with us and tell us how you knew prime minister sharon. >> well, i knew sharon before he became prime minister and after he became prime minister and as a general he was not very disciplined and decide of the leadership in 1956 he walked into an ambush by the egyptians because of the discipline and did it a few times in different wars and crossing the suez canal

against orders and this was shaky start. as then later on it was a big mistake he made in beirut in 1982 when he hit the palestinian camps and ended his career because of the commission found him responsible for the death of hundreds. but when he actually made a come back then, he was genuine about actually making peace and although he was disliked by his enemies and once he shook hands he stood by his word. so i'm not quite sure why that would happen if he did not have a stroke, but it was definitely genuine without reaching peace. >> reporter: you knew him personally.

so how will you, yourself, remember him? i mean clearly you stated these major moments in history, probably the most important figure in israeli history but how would you describe the man, was he the bulldozer and was he a bulldog? >> he was an overwhelmingly character i must say and he probably wouldn't allow you in the discussion to interrupt him much to the point he was making. it was helpful when i was researching one of my books, conflict in the middle east and came out in 1993 and i actually spent a day with him at his ranch at his farm which is about six miles south -- southwest of jerusalem. he did actually give me very good information about politics and, in fact, confirmed the six-day war this 1967 was about

water because the syrians wants to divert water away from the sea of galilee which would be putting pressure on israel. so the launch of the war because of water was very helpful. the second point i understood from him, that he always has a strategy and not an ideology man, he was, for example, if we think the settlement of the west bank and they are controversial and big stumbling block for peace where the palestinians don't like expansion of settlement because of peace. but he saw settlement as means to an end. not as an ideological end, ie to defend israel and its security. so once you achieve this security through peace and other means you don't mean those many of those settlements on the hill top. he was quite willing to dismantle settlements as he did

indeed in gaza and this was an example to him. >> reporter: interesting assessment from you, author of the edge of war and thanks for joining us this morning, sir. the final phase of a massive operation to move the costa concordia has begun. the plan is to tow the wrecked cruise ship away from a small tuskin and it was two years ago today it hit rocks and killed 32 people and it is upright but rests where it went down, the world's largest maritime operation. minor damage this morning after a powerful earthquake near puerto rico and felt buildings swaying in san-juan and said a magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck a few hours ago but epicenter

was 35 mutuals off shore and 17 miles below the surface. thailand's political crisis is entering a phase today and protesters against up coming elections are trying to shut down bangkok. they vowed to block intersections, gather outside the homes of key government figures to prevent them from leaving and cutoff power and water to government offices. as scott talks they will paralyze the government ahead of elections. >> reporter: this intersection is jammed on a monday morning. what is not normal is that the cause this time is pedestrian traffic, not taxis and buses. thousands of antigovernment protesters are at 7 major intersections and have stages and settled in. it kicks off their self-proclaimed shut down of the capitol, home to 12 million people and arrived sunday night and the numbers grew by the hour

on monday. some came from far away who flew in from germany. >> translator: and corruption in the country and don't have to relate it in the future as long as they are not corrupt. >> reporter: leaders say their shut down will last about 15 days, about the time elections are due to take place. there is no doubt that these antigovernment protesters caused major disruption here in central bangkok but it's unclear how this will help them achieve long-term goals and unseating the prime minister. the government is keeping a close watch on the mass gathering. the caretaker prime minister sent most of the morning in defense ministry meeting with top advisors and concerned that violence could breakout and 15,000 soldiers have been deployed. some protesters the peaceful

approach means they have already won. >> translator: today we are winning by showing the number of antigovernment protesters is growing and that they want to come out and demonstrate without violence, without harm to win this peaceful battle. >> reporter: the protest leader has called in the final battle but just how he can convert a popular movement on the streets is far from clear, al jazeera and bangkok. >> reporter: at least 8 people have been killed since the protests began last year and saturday 7 people were injured when unknown gunmen opened fire on demonstrators at the main rally fight in bangkok. a new push for democracy in, ukraine is led by a heavy weight boxer and joins thousands on sunday, "the boxer" turned opposition leader urged the crowd to continue the demonstrations that began back in november when the ukraine

president froze ties with europe and aligned with moscow and it secured a $15 billion bail out from the kremlin. safety measures on trains are coming in the wake of the deadly derailment in new york last month and shumer have cameras to monitor drivers and outward cameras for the trend and the camera will defect if they are playing games or nodding off and they will enact the rule this year. a metro north train derailed in december killing four people and the engineer admits he may have fallen asleep. target may not be alone with getting hacked, three well-known u.s. stores were also breached and the hacks were smaller than the one that hit target last month and they have not made a public announcement about the

cyber attack and promising to make significant changes in the wake of the security breach. >> we don't know the full extent about the impact but we have malware and removed it so we can have a safe and secure shopping environment. >> reporter: at least 110 million target customers had their personal and credit card information stolen over the holiday season. it's been a tough winter for a lot of low-income families. more than 1.3 million out of work americans had their employment benefits cut in december. one month before that congress slashed food stamp benefits and andy reports the impact is trickling down to some local businesses. >> david opened up his grocery store on chicago's south side neighborhood 15 years ago after moving from jerusalem, for the first time he is seriously considering closing shop for

good to put him and his four employees out of work. >> i go to work to survive. i have family. i need to find something. >> reporter: david's store like the vast majority on this side of town accept link cards which provides benefits, the vast majority of his customers are snap recipients and the end of money ear marked for the program meant benefits returned to 2009 levels, that is $20-$40 less each month recipients had been getting for the past few years and david noticed a difference right away. >> customers try to make shopping for the kids and more fresh meet but now unfortunately it's down and buy only what little bit need, you know. i hope they will get back and increased and get more for the family.

>> reporter: snap recipients like shannon may see the benefits cut more in the coming days. congress is nearing agreement on a new farm bill which could mean an average snap cut of another $20-$40 a month. >> items and make sure i don't over spend, you know, things like that. >> reporter: how tough is it? well, when you're not working it's tough. >> you shall be fed. >> reporter: he can pray for better days but her church pastor is worried on the from the domino effect. >> the family and community without of the walls and doing thing and you will find crime will go up because they have to do things they normally would not do. >> reporter: customers have to rely on free food pantries when snap doesn't cover everything. >> they are talking about decreasing snap benefits again this month. >> oh, my gosh then i really will be in trouble and back at the pantry because there is no

other way i can make it. >> reporter: david said he lost $7,000 in november after the first snap cuts and that is 20% of his business. he has lowered the prices on some of his fresh food but will that be enough for survival after the next round of snap cuts. >> i do my best and if not i will give up. >> reporter: no one knows exactly how much more money will be taken out out of snap package but it will be felt by owners in the neighborhood as well as the customers, andy with al jazeera chicago. >> reporter: congress is finalizing the 2013 farm bill which is likely to reduce food stamp benefits by $8.7 billion over the next decade. all right, looking at business news now, detroit auto show shifts into high gear and opens the doors to the media today for a look under the hood as many as 50 new cars, trucks and concept vehicles and the new chief executive mary kicked off the

show and made her first appearance with reporters since getting the job and she was in a small pickup truck and takes over ceo on wednesday and the first woman to lead a major auto maker and volt wagon is pushing in and plans to invest $7 billion in the region in an effort to boost sales. alley -- and ali will be reporting in real time and check it out. gas prices going up and the price per gallon jumped 8 cents in three week and the average is $3.35 a gallon and the cheap gas is found in albuquerque, new mexico but going to new york you will pay top dollar. stock features pointing to losses at the open, one market watcher says friday's disappointing jobs report puts recovery in question. >> you need to accelerate to

$200,000 per month number to reach what they call 3 percent growth in the world economies and what we need and shooting for and hoping for. we don't know yet if we will get it. >> reporter: the dow is 16437. s&p 5 00's 1842 and nasdaq 4174. in asia the markets are mixed and the niki was closed and after global banking regulators used the amount of debt banks are allowed to hold. a nashville nonprofit is helping women turn their lives around and not only rehabilitates them but also employs them. >> the thistle cafe looks normal but when you start talking to the women behind the counter you realize it's different. >> i thought living the life i

did i thought i should be dead. >> reporter: it's hard for her to stay clean and sober and trips to rehab never work and ended up back the street to do whatever it took to get high and most of her life she was selling her body even with two kids at home. >> when i hit the streets i started using again and i started walking all hours of the night, jumping in and out of cars with men i did not know and prostituting my body and just getting high. >> reporter: she is doing better and sober and has a job and for almost 20 years this nonprofit founded by a priest has been helping troubled women to get clean and sober and all done through private grants and donations. thistle farms receives no government assistance. the rehabilitation program has given her hope and tools she needs to stay clean. she also learned that she was not alone. >> and they had been raped and

molested and god brought them through and live and love and laugh again and there is hope. >> reporter: for a dozen years graduates have been making products by hand. they are sold now all over the country. the cafe is the newest venture from the chairs to the desks to the wood, everything has been donated. and she never thought she would make it is now the cafe's general manager. >> i know that today i can do this. i know that i can stay clean and sober. and in my heart i have no reason to go backwards and all i can say is i just thank god because it was by his amazing grace i'm sitting here. >> reporter: there has been a string of firsts for aletha, she and her daughter moved into their first apartment. >> it feels good to be back in a relationship with my daughter. >> reporter: she has a boyfriend and hope to get married some day and have the support group at thistle farms

and i'm with al jazeera. >> it offers health treatment for people in the program and access to dentists and mental health services. a troubling tune at the birth place of oprah. what is threatening the shut down of italy's premier oprah house and the future of the catholic church. >> the weather in the northern plains is for snow and weather and we will look at the radar and the national forecast. >> you are looking now at the precision for former israeli prime minister ariel sharon and the service begins in just a few minutes. ♪ >> next we consider sacrifice and whether saving some members of endangered species is worth

♪ welcome back to al jazeera america, just ahead the financial troubles putting oprah in jeopardy in the country where it was invented but we will look where the snow and rain may fall across the country and dave warren is back. >> a little snow and a quick-moving storm out of the north will give us a little bit

of snow across the northern plains and not happening yet but will be happening throughout the day today. as far as where, here is a winter weather advisory, a little bit of light snow from north dakota through minnesota and through minneapolis there and looks like we will see a little snow there. the orange color are the wind warnings and there is light snow and windy weather across montana and wyoming and warmer air where we see the rain and rain coming across the southeast and will continue to push up the mid-atlantic coast and all rain with temperatures staying above 50. stephanie. >> reporter: thank you, alls -- they arrived an signas and the iss crew had to use robotic armed to capture the unmanned aircraft which had 3,000 pounds of equipment including gifts

from families of the station on the iss. pope francis chose 19 cardinals and some from developing nations and in line with his belief that the church must pay more attention to the poor and includes priests from asia to african countries and haiti and are younger than 80 and eligible to vote for the next pope and cardinal served as advisors. the land where oprah was born 400 years ago is struggling to keep the tradition alive and italy many houses are in financial trouble and in danger of going under and as we report, italy's premier op hsh pshgopra rome also in deep debt. ♪ they are the heart and soul of the oprah, the chorus of rome's famous oprah house.

the oprah house is in trouble and owes around $50 million. its management can receive a bail out but only if they cut jobs. >> translator: the oprah is one of the most prestigous like a painting and should be protected by the state and our constitution guarantees that. >> reporter: the financial crisis in italy is forcing the government to slash funding for the arts and the government has to save billions of dollars in the next few years and oprah houses in italy are mostly state funded and some had no choice but to cut performances or in some cases close down. this is one of rome's oldest theatres founded in 1727. the last official performance here was in 2011. campaigners are trying to raise

enough money to keep this place open. the italian spends the money on culture and restoring ancient sites like the coliseum and they say it will survive the financial crisis. >> translator: they have to manage the administration more carefully so this tradition can survive for many years. it is of course my duty above all to respect the profession of these people. i think it would be difficult to imagine the future where culture is not at the heart of things. ♪ in rome's oprah house, this is swan lake and when they went on strike last month the orchestra was released with a cd track but now they are back and say the show must go on but it's not clear for how long.

and i'm with al jazeera rome. >> reporter: all right, here is a quick look at the rich history of the oprah in italy. in 1600 the early surviving oprah was this florence and 177 # it was in milan and famous for having the hardest to please audience in the world. a test could spot alzheimer's and have an exercise to be done at home and identify some cognitive problems associated with dementia and participants in the study were asked to perform basic tasks like identifying pictures and making simple calculation. the test is not meant to diagnose alzheimer's but doctors say it can identify who may be at risk. someone paid more than a quarter of a million dollars to hunt one of the most endangers species

species and the auction was a way to raise money to save the rare animals but they are furious and put the black rhino population at less than 4,000, no word on the name or nationality of the hunter who won the action. >> reporter: the funeral of prime minister ariel sharon will begin any moment and follows a state ceremony held earlier today and attended by dignitaries rounds the world and u.s. and powers reached a nuclear deal with iran and they will begin rolling back production next week and allow access to the facility for six months and shutting down roads in bangkok to prevent up coming elections in thailand and trying to block key government figures inside their homes.

also in the next hour digging in the revelation of robert gates' tell all book and what it could show about election manipulation. and half of the children don't finish middle school and a look at classes they are using to keep the students enrolled. i'm dave and looking at a storm coming in the northern plains now but will untense, and we will be back in 2 1/2 minutes and thanks for watching. ♪

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>> former israeli prime minister sharon is being laid to rest this morning. the man considered a military hero by some and a monster by others will be given a full military funeral. >> putting the finishing touches on a historic agreement with iran, agreeing to freeze much which its nuclear program for limited relief from economic sanctions. >> impeaching governor christie? one prominent lawmaker says it could happen. >> the children who drop out of school are usually from very poor families. they don't have the financial

support to complete a regular education. >> getting students who have dropped out back to school. one country is giving kids skills they need to improve their lives. >> good morning, welcome to aljazeera america. i'm stephanie sy. >> i'm richelle cary. foreign dignitaries are in israeli to say goodbye to former prime minister sharon, passing away at the age of 85 after spending eight years in a coma. he was honored in a ceremony outside the israeli parliament. the memorial was attended by current israeli prime minute at her netanyahu, a one time political foe of sharon's. vice president joe biden also on hand, calling sharon a complex

man who always put his country first. >> prime minister sharon was not only loved by the jewish people, he not only loved them, but he loved the land of israel. >> his body will be buried in a military style ceremony in southern israeli fooling procession from jerusalem. >> that is where our next story is. what's the scene like there. >> good morning, stephanie. you can see and begin to hear behind me, this funeral is about to start and thousands of people are up on that hill to say a final goodbye to the man they used to call king eric for his military victories. he defined the nature of the

borders and state. you heard from joe biden there, a lot of people talking about how much sharon loved the land and how much he loved this land, the farm he's had for decades. it's the largest private farm in all of strehl. when israel wanted to bury sharon in jerusalem, his family said no, we he prefer for him to be buried next to his wife. >> a maverick in death as well as life. not far from the gaza strip, does that present security issues? >> this is within the range of rockets that gaza, that militants in gaza have fired and this morning, the i.d.f., israel military said two militants fired rockets, but they landed within gaza, so there's no threat at all to this service. the leaders of gaza say they have no desire to create threat

or have any escalation with israel, but israel military tells me they are on heightened alert for any kind of rockets that could hit here. we saw the army bringing in loud speakers just in case there is any kind of rocket attack, so there is a security threat like there often is in southern israeli, but right no there is no indication that this would be the target of any rocket attack. >> what kind of reaction are you hearing about either in the palestinian territories to sharon's funeral today or within israel? >> i think it's important to see that sharon was polarizing between israeli itself. palestinians call him a war hero and some a war criminal. in southern lebanon in the early 1980's, he went in as a defense minister. when he went into refugee camps,

he supported them and had flares put up as hundreds of thousands of palestinian refugees were slaughtered. in the 1950's, he created israeli's reputation for ruthless reprisal to any kind of palestinian aggression. many see this memorial service this morning saying that's the story that israeli tells, a pillar of strength, a lot of people who see him at a symbol of israeli cruelty. >> so much of israeli's history pivots around this one man. reporting from outside his ranch in southern israeli, thanks, nick. >> civilians caught in the crossfire in iraq as government and al-qaeda battle for control. mass gunman are firing as a government helicopter. others stood guard over a captured military hummer in i

fallujah. parts of nearby ar are are a mae been taken over. >> hoping to avoid further blood shed, he says the people of fallujah have suffered enough. at least 60 civilians have been killed since fighters took control of the twoties this month. >> john kerry and his russian counterpart of discussing otherwising cease fires in specific parts of syria. they're meeting in paris now trying to convince syrian rebel to say take part in the talks. those talks are said to take place in 10 days. they insist they will not

include assad's regime in any future transitional government. they will decide what iran's role will be in the effort to end syria's civil war. we are in paris now. these talks are actually the talks before the talks, really in geneva. tell us what you're hearing about how things are going, what the delegates are doing right now. >> this is a difficult task to be done, so it is talks about talks. we have not heard whether they have persuaded the syrian opposition. they will make their decision

following the paris meetings, somewhere around the 10th they would give an answer. we heard this morning on a number of other topics aside from getting the opposition to come to the table, we heard from the russian prime minister and united states that they do intend or hope to establish a ceasefire, some humanitarian access to refugee camps and to do this not as a precursor or prerequirement the to talks but as a show of good faith, and they say that they are optimistic that that will be achieved. the russian foreign minister very close to damascus and they say they are able to influence the assad government to go along with the ceasefire and humanitarian assistance. richelle. >> this group of leaders are called the friends of syria. what do they see their role as?

>> that's right, this is 11 member group. they call themselves the friends of syria. they're made up primarily of western and regional arab countries. they see their role as trying to get the opposition consolidated, sliddified. they look today the mainstream opposition as opposed to some fringe elements, which has the international community deeply concerned that are fighting in syria, but they primarily are aimed at trying to reach some sort of diplomatic solution to the fighting in syria, as they say basically, there can can be no other option, but a diplomatic resolution here, otherwise, it's just going to be more blood shed. >> just days before voters head to the polls, fighting has

broken out. on sunday, students supporting ousted president mohamed morsi battled security forces at cairo university. they hurled rocks and molotov cocktails at police, who responded by firing tear gas into the crowd. the unrest comes two days before a planned vote on a draft resolution for the country. >> three aljazeera reporters are accused of spreading lies harmful to state security and joining a terrorist are group. aljazeera says the allegations are fabricated and is demanding their release. two other journalists are from our sister channel and they have been detained in egypt for five months. >> the french military is trying to broker a truce in the central african republic days after the president of the country went into compile after resigning. rifle militia man laid down arms

and embraced each other. widespread looting over the weekend in the capitol left 13 people dead. mosques along with muslim owned shops and homes were attacked by christian rivals. the united nations called for calm and has stepped up flights for foreigners wanting to leave. >> a strong earthquake in puerto rico caused minor budaj on some part of the island. the quake struck just after midnight, about 35 miles off the northwest coast. residents of the island say they felt some swaying of buildings in the apartmental city of san juan. no tsunami warnings are in effect and no injuries reported. >> a pause on sunday, mourner held a ceremony in port-au-prince. more than 300,000 people died after that 7.4 magnitude

earthquake struck in tock between. others suggest the death toll is between 40,000 and 80,000. half the people are till living in those crowded tent camps. >> four years. >> can you believe that? i know. actually, i said haitians pause. i think it's more like people around the world paused to remember that. >> especially with them so close to us geographically. >> a storm system hitting the u.s. may cause problems for the country later this week. for more, let's bring in our meteorologist. good morning. >> just a little snow today, but that will be followed by cold air. not bitter cold arctic frigid air like we've had, but just some colder air will be following this snow and rain. it will be rain across the northeast, because the storm's pulling up warmer air, temperatures above 50 today from baltimore with washington, d.c. through new york and new england. this is some ice jams that forms on these rivers, because that bitter cold air and now the

warmer air tarting to melt that ice jams. the ice can jam up the river, cause flooding. that could melt and cause flash flooding. these are the spots of green here. they've had ice jams on various rivers and creeks leading to flooding problems. that could till happen today even though the temperatures are climbing above freezing. temperatures will be up to the 50's in philadelphia, washington, d.c., toronto, cleaved into the 40's, so above freeing there. this storm pumps up the warm air, also the rain. a lot of rain across the southeast. a brief period of snow across the northern plains as colder air comes in through the north. warmer temperatures bring up the rain as frost in the mid atlantic states and northeast. very heavy rain expected southeast and mid atlantic overnight and tomorrow, followed by colder air. temperatures will be dropping, not a big shot of cold, arctic

eight, but just the drop in temperatures expected by the middle of the week once the rape clears out. >> new safety measures on trains are coming in the wake that have deadly derailment in new york last month. new york senator charles schumer and richard blumenthal of connecticut are pushing for legislation to require cameras on all trains to monitor drivers. outward cameras could be installed for tracks. it could detect if engineers are playing games or nodding off. a metro north train derailed outside of new york city in december, killing four people. the engineer admits he may have fallen asheep. >> hundreds of thousands of people in west virginia are waking up this morning to their fifth day without clean water. a chemical spill last week tainted the tap water supply in nine counties in the state. we are joined from downtown charleston in west virginia. do we have any idea when it is

going to get better the for these people. >> the governor told us they've done 100 samples and tests on the water. he said the latest results are trending the right direction and are encouraging, but stopped short saying this problem would be fixed today or tomorrow. good news is that there is booleed water for people who need it. you have tanker trucks stationed across the county. this is at a local hospital. as this goes into yet another day, people are frustrated and really inconveniented. >> listen beth frasier and her daughter haven't showered in three days pap case of bottled water is the only clean we're they've had. >> we've been heating up water and washing off with, like we're camping. it's really very much like going camping, you know, when you go camping, you don't have a shower. >> for a fourth day, 300,000

west virginiaens are told not to use tap water after a chemical spill in the elk river thursday. >> the biggest frustration is everybody wants to know when, when will we have water, what do we do when the water comes back. >> there's no clear time line for when the tap water will be safe to use. state officials say they are flushing and testing the system hourly. the latest results show levels of the chemical are declining and even undetectable in some areas. >> i believe that we're at a point where we could say that we see light at the end of the tunnel. >> west virginia's governor says when the ban is lifted, it will be done in phases. the state set up a 24 hour hot line and interactive on line map so residents can find when their neighborhood is in the clear. the federal emergency management agency is trucking in cases of bottled water. while she's frustrated,

elizabeth knows she's fortunate. as a librarian, she's able to work. there are worries about other affected jobs. >> i'm concerned about the long term ripple effect for the lives that people i know who this is a big deal. it's hurting their businesses or they work part time. >> meantime, a federal investigation continues here in west virginia. authorities are wanting to talk to this company, freedom industries, responsible for this chemical spill, finding out exactly how this happened. they want to know when they notified authorities. we heard they may have waited at least four hours before notifying the proper authorities. >> it's going to be an extensive, lengthy investigation. jonathan martin joining us live from charleston, thank you so much. >> compromised customers. >> target may not be the only retail are are hit by hackers. the other companies that may

have been targeted in a recent data breach. >> sharpening the sword, the touch action one new jersey lawmakers suggested could be taken against governor chris christie as the probe widens into that traffic controversy on a busy bridge. >> $7 billion, it is our big number of the day. keep going, keep going, there it is. it's a big investment one automakers is making in north america.

assault. afghan president karzai is long accuse

>> today's big number represents a sizeable bet by europe's biggest car makers, $7 billion is how much volkswagen is pouring into a north american mcing campaign to increase sales. the investment will be spent as part of the automakers's goal of selling 1 million volkswagen and out decars annually in the u.s. by 2018. it will introduce a new seven feet s.u.v. in 2016.

>> target revealed the number of customers affected by the recent data breach, 110 million. that number could get bigger thanks to other retailers hit in that same hack. we'll find out who else was tarted. first let's get a look at temperatures across the nation today. our meteorologist is back, dave. >> after millions and billions, i can only talk 51. tough to follow. we're 51 in memphis, the 50's will be spreading to the northeast, so it's climbing above freezing. this is because of a snowstorm in minneapolis, bringing temperatures a little colder, but that air will spread to the northeast and that means rain tonight and tomorrow. right now, below freezing in philadelphia, climbing into the 50's there. once that rain clears out, dropping 30 in fargo, 20 in minneapolis.

it's not bitter cold frigid air, just cold arctic air that will spread east. that by the middle of the week, the temperatures clear out and temperatures go down. >> target may not be the only retailer hit by hackers during the holiday season. the high end store niemann marcus was also compromised in smaller numbers. several other big stores were also hacked. >> an exclusive report sheds light on how retailers like target and niemann marcus are not the only affected by a data breach. malar breaches took place at three other well known retail stores here in the u.s. those retailers have yet to announce cyber attacks. in most cases, credit card companies and banks are forbidden from naming merchants unless they disclose information

themselves. some require companies to contact their customers when their information is exposed. niemann marcus used twitter writing: the c.e.o. of target said the company promises significant changes in security measures in light of the breach. the company has yet to understand how their system was hacked. >> we don't know the full extent of what transpired, but what we do know is there was malware installed on our point of sale registers. we remove that had malware so we can provide a safe and secure shopping environment. >> aljazeera reached out to bloomingdales, lord and taylor, macy's and gap. none of these companies returned

our request for comment, except for macy's, saying: >> aljazeera reached out to visa and master card and have yet to hear back. federal investigators are trying to determine if all these cases linked. >> tarts announced last week that hackers made off with data of one ton million customers. >> in other business news this morning, wall street can't seem to shake its news blues. dow futures down, investors turning attention to quarterly report cards from big companies this week. the earnings news should be good.

>> the economy's doing better, the u.s. accelerating, europe's doing better. the emerging markets seem to have bottomed. i expect the season to be good, up particular in revenues, combined with cost control should lead to a 5%, 6% in earnings. >> the dow starts today at 15,637. the nasdaq is at 4,174. >> in asia, markets ended the day mixed, nikkei closed for a public holiday. >> the detroit auto show shifts into high gear, opening stores to the media today for a look under thehood of 50 new cars, trucks and concept vehicles. general motors chief executive kicked off the show approximate she made her first appearance before reporters in getting the

job eclipsing the rollout of the companion, a pickup truck. she is the first woman to lead a major automakers. >> hour ali velshi will be at the show and you can see that on real money here on aljazeera america. >> it's going cost you more to fill up these days. the price for a gallon of gas jumping 8 cents in the last three weeks. the nationwide average is now $3.35, the cheapest gas can be found in ago bekirk key, new mexico. the most expensive is on long island. >> the upscale women's clothing maker says it is seeing a meaningful reduction in business. last march, it had to recall some popular yoga pants after customers complained they were too sheer.

>> a press conference, 108 minutes for an apology from governor christie has done little to stop questions. questions are raised about his future as a possible presidential canned day. joining us is tracy pots, from washington, d.c. tell us more, the latest about what is happening with chris christie in the the aftermath. >> the latest is that committee in new jersey, the lawmakers looking into this want more information. they want more documents. we saw hundreds of pages released last week. they plan to subpoena thousands more this week. they've got to renew their subpoena power because they're right in the middle of a transition. they plan to get more documents to prove whether or not governor christie had any knowledge of this big traffic jam being planned to punish a democratic

who wasn't supporting him. he has said he had no knowledge of it whatsoever. the documents so far and republicans emphasize this, the documents so far show no ties to christie specifically, but the committee is still looking, still searching, so that's going on this week. he's got to give his state of the state address. this is going to be the first time since that news conference that we've heard him talking about anything other than what is being called bridge gate now. lots of questions about whether this is going to affect him in 2016. >> let's talk about still what's happening in the state and then get to the sunday talk shows yesterday. the democratic heading up the investigation said he doesn't believe chris christie, just simply does not believe him. tell us more about that. >> he says he doesn't believe it for this reason, a number of people very high up in kristie's

office in his political campaign, former campaign manager, others were aware and knew about this, and now, the paperwork is tarting to show that it wasn't just that one deputy campaign manager. as a result, the question has become how can everyone around him know and christie have no idea and if that was the case, what is the culture of that office that he promoted that they felt comfortable keeping this away from him. >> the rest are of the republican party on the sunday talk shows, went to bat for him. how much longer will they go to bat for him? >> as long as, as john kerry put it, the other shoe doesn't drop, they think he's safe. >> all right. thank you so much, appreciate it. >> now another bombshell is surfacing against the governor, a cnn report claims christie

misused super storm sandy relief funds. it is investigated whether he improperly used those funds to promote tourism. >> coming up, bidding farewell to the late israeli prime minister. >> we'll talk with one expert on the middle east about the legacy he leaves behind. >> accusations confirm the claims made by hamid karzai about the obama administration that are being backed up by the new book from former defense secretary robert gates. >> focusing on a swine flu outbreak, the new concerns about who is coming down with it. >> saturday, it looked like alex rodriguez weekend couldn't get worse, but then sunday happened. coming up, new startling details surrounding the yankee slugger.

fema sending clean water to west virginia in the wake of a toxic chemical spill. hundreds of thousands can't drink or bathe. >> the united states is reportedly considering sanctions on south sudan if the violence is not contained soon. thousands are packing into the camps if the risk of disease escalates. delegates are the ethiopia trying to hammer out a deal to apiece both sides. >> in central african republic, the president steps down. safety. >> an indian diplomat is back in her home country after the u.s. ordered her to leave on visa fraud charms. an american counterpart has been september packing. india's foreign minister says it is not a standoff.

>> these are al jazeera america. we understand that every news story begins and ends with people. >> the efforts are focused on rescuing stranded residents. >> we pursue that story beyond the headline, pass the spokesperson, to the streets. >> thousands of riot police deployed across the capital. >> we put all of our global resources behind every story. >> it is a scene of utter devastation. >> and follow it no matter where it leads - all the way to you. al jazeera america, take a new look at news.

>> welcome back to aljazeera america. >> while some mourn the death of former israel prime minister sharon, other criticize his actions during his life. we'll talk more about his lasting legacy on the world. >> it's complex, absolutely. another leader that has been polarizing is afghan president hamid karzai. he previously expressed concern that the obama administration was trying to move him from power. it's a concern that was often dismissed as paranoia, but the new book defense secretary gates is giving validation to the claim. >> first, israelis are paying final respect to say former prime minister ariel sharon. he was honored during a state ceremony outside the parliament.

dignitaries from around the world attended, including former british prime minister tony blare and vice president joe biden. >> a country like israeli, when losing a man like prime minister sharon, it doesn't just feel like the loss of a leader. it feels like a death in the family. >> the controversial military and political leader passed away saturday. he was 85. he'd been in a coma for eight years. that his body will be taken from jerusalem to his ranch where he will buried in a military style ceremony, to get underway any minute now. with us to discuss the life and legacy of ariel sharon, professor, thank you for being with us this morning. a complicated legacy as we've been saying. how would you characterize him

and how he will be remembered? a lot of people draw the can frost between the peacemaker he seemed to become at the end of his prime ministership and the warmonger some would call him as a military leader joe in fact, he was both, but i know him, i knew him. to put your question in the proper context, this is a man who was considered to be the father of the movement. his life and his cause and everything he focused on was the fate of the state of israel. that for many years, he believed that building the war was the only way to protect national security. as a deep idealogue, he changed his mind when he became prime minister second time in the 2004

and decided for israeli to remain a democratic state and a jewish state, it must end the occupation. i think that was a very daring move, specifically at the time in the midst of the second war. he decided to evacuate gaza with the intention of further evacuating the greater part of the west bank. i think he would be remembered for that. however, people feel negative about him specifically among the palestinians, some arab states, but i think they should also remember him as a guy who eventually made that historic decision. no prime minister had made it. >> when you say he changed his mind, do you think he had regret? >> absolute not. he was pragmatic.

he also was very, very pragmatic and he realizes, he realized then that the time has come occupation is not sustainable, and hence, israeli must make the kind of moves to relieve it from this burden. >> wasn't part that have pressure from the time in 2003, george w. bush wanting to restart peace talks in the summer of 2003, wasn't part of his move and the withdrawal from gaza part of that and knowing he had to keep the u.s. on the side of israel? >> he would not have succumb to any outside pressure, including that from the united states. i mean, we can see for example, prime minister netanyahu, he did not succumb to pressure coming from president obama in connection toward the settlement, but not sharon. sharon came to that conclusion because as much as he devoted his entire life to the safety of

israeli, he realized that he had to change course to in fact be able to achieve the same goal and that is the future of israeli as a state. >> can you talk more about sharon's relationship with the united states, in fact, president obama spoke of sharon's love for israeli, but didn't necessarily list anymore specific things about his legacy. talk about his relationship with the united states. >> i think his relationship that with the u.s. was very good, as a matter of fact. yes, they did not agree with some of his policies at times, some of his moves early on when he was a general, but this is, you know, the united states also looked at him as a person who was a defender of the state of israeli, a friend of the united states. he, you heard him say time and again, the only real friend of israel is the united states, and that is very important. he recognized time and again that united states is the ultimate defender of the state

of israel. recognizing that and he always acted in a manner that would not antagonize the united states and had a relationship with former president bush. >> professor, bottom line, do you think history will be kind to the legacy of ariel sharon? >> you know, he was controversial, but i honestly think in the final analysis, yes, because he needs to be followed by current israeli leaders, specifically the current prime minister. the time has come for the occupation to end, and i think prime minister netanyahu should be following the footsteps of prime minister ariel sharon. >> he faces all the same issues. thank you for being with us this morning. >> my pleasure, anytime. >> arizona senator john mccain is the latest to weigh in on former defense secretary robert

gates autobiography. in the book, he criticizes the vice president. when asked if the timing was appropriate, senator mccain said secretary gates probably should have waited but was within his rights to publish his book. >> frankly, i might have if i had giving him advice, i would have waited, but far as waiting until it's over in afghanistan, i wouldn't have done that, but maybe retrospect of a little longer than now. i also respect his ability to voice his views anytime he wants to. >> in his book, gates says the obama administration voiced skepticism about working with afghanistan's president hamid karzai and tried to push him out of power four queers ago. gates wrote:

>> as we report, this confirms the fierce the afghan president often expressed. >> was a an accusation often dismissed as pour know i can't. during his reelection cook pain in 2009, hamid karzai excused the u.s. of trying to get rid of him. >> there were lots of reasons the british media wanted to bring a change into the structure of governance in afghanistan to weaken the central government of afghanistan and go to the strong men that they like in afghanistan and to put resources through them to afghanistan. >> now, excerpts from then u.s. defense secretary robert gates new book say that was true. gates writes and gally about president obama's special envoy at the time, richard holbrook's attempts as what he says extended support to karzai's challengers.

the presidential palace deputy spokesperson in kabul has reacted with an eye told you so. >> what secretary gates has revealed in his book further proves the righteousness of president karzai's claims that there were deliberate efforts to disregard and to manipulate the very genuine votes of the afghan people. >> but karzai was also accused of foul play at the time. evidence of a campaign to rig the vote in his favor was widely reported. new allegation of interference by the obama administration could further discredit the election, leaving the afghan people unsure of who to trust. >> they don't believe anybody anymore. the people of afghanistan have been misled so many times by so many players that sometimes, they have lost, at times, they don't have the self confidence that is sufficient for a nation

to act on in their own interest. it's very dangerous that we have depleted a nation from its self confidence. >> revelations about possible u.s. interference in the last presidential elections here come just a few months before afghans go to the polls to vote for their next leader. president karzai has warned repeatedly against foreign manipulation, a warning which now seems to hold more weight. jane ferguson, aljazeera, kabul, afghanistan. >> robert gates autobiography hits book stores tomorrow. >> a new push for democracy in the ukraine is led by a man you may be familiar with, former heavyweight boxing champion joins some 50,000 protestors in key every sunday. the boxer turned opposition leader urged the crowd to continue the deman tryings that began in november when the ukrainian president decided to trees ties with europe and align

ukraine with moscow. it's part of a pact that included a $15 billion bailout from the kremlin. >> thigh hand's political crisis has protesters against upcoming elections are trying to shut down bangkok. they blocked intersections, gathered outside the homes of key government figures to prevent them from a leaving and cut power and water to government offices. >> the troubled healthcare.gov website is getting a much-needed reboot. it's tapped major technology company to take over operations on the site just days after lead contractor c.g.i. federal said they would leave the project. the launch was widely seen as a flop, leaving hundreds of thousands of users unable to sign up for health insurance. the federal website serves 36

taits. >> the number of flu deaths reported nationwide is on the rise. health experts say this year's train of h1n1 is tough on healthy adults, not just vulnerable patients. doctors say getting the flu vaccination is still the best thing you can do to protect yourself. >> i did get my flu shot. >> i have not, and neither has any of my family. >> i did, a month or two ago already. >> i get it every year. >> people die from the flu every year. >> she's right and this year, the centers for disease control said 35 states are reporting widespread flu activity. c.d.c. experts stress that the number of cases is normal, but the strain of flu they are seeing is giving them pause. it's h1n1, the strain that was so aggressive back in 2009. >> body aches, fevers. >> heal finishes say so far this season, there have been 28 deaths across california, nine have died in san francisco alone. the health officer for san francisco says it's not only the

high risk group of infants and seen years that are vulnerable now. healthy adults are also at risk. >> those people that die most likely probably had a viral pneumonia, where they didn't get a bacterial pneumonia, but the virus really attacked their lungs. >> about 50 miles to the south, the regional medical center at san jose set up a tent to treat the rush of patients with flu like symptoms. >> we are probably seeing approximately 50-70 patients more per day than what we're usually seeing. >> the problem isn't confined to the bay area. nationwide, the c.d.c. said more than 2600 people have been hospitalized. there were nine deaths in just one st. louis hospital, and in north texas, at least 19 people have died from the flu this year. emergency rooms in dallas report a 40% patient increase from the flu, eight times more positive tests than just a few weeks ago.

>> the influenza illness has really hit young adults and duties very hard. we're talking healthy adults. >> there are constant new efforts to conquer the flu, now a high dose flu vaccine for people over 65 which offers extra protection. >> there are new tools in the fight against the flu. like a smart phone app that helps users track and report cases of the flu. the c.d.c. has an app that discusses treatment and prevehicles. >> pharmacies in the bay area are busy as people race to get their shots. >> we're early in the season. it's just beginning. it's just beginning to take off, so if you haven't been vaccinated, get vaccinated. >> he stresses get the shot, wash hands and stay home if you are sick. that lisa bernard, aljazeera, san francisco. >> as the risk of getting sick from the flu rises, so does the demand for those vaccines. from texas to california, pharmacies have reported

shortages of the needed shots across the country. >> i know you're a baseball fan and it's a sports headline that won't go away no matter the season. alex rodriguez and baseball's doping scandal, now this morning, new developments. we have the story. >> new explosive developments in this story. it looks like alex rodriguez is still swinging for the fences. today he is expected to file an appeal for his historic suspension in federal court. this despite the fact that 162 games is down from the original 211 game suspension baseball wanted to give him, thanks to an arbitrators ruling saturday. the yankees third baseman continue to say deny he ever used performance enhancing drugs, but in a 60 minute interview that aired sunday night, bio against director directly refuted rodriguez's claim of in sense saying he directly injected rodriguez because he was too scared of

needles to do it himself. he said he would take lozenges before the game. >> he would put one of these in his mouth probably 10 or 15 minutes before game time or as soon as he went into the field. a player could take it right before game time and by the time they get back into the locker room after the game, and there was any possibility of testing, they would test negative. they would testify clean. >> bosch told 60 minutes: >> also appearing in the 60 minute's piece was bud selig, as well as chief operating officer

rob manfried. in a statement, the mlbpa says: >> that arbitrator is the affair mentioned rob manfried. the league says in part:

>> certainly some explosive developments and certainly one of the developments that also came out was that a man close to a-rod may have been implicated or was alleged to have threatened the life of bosch, so exclosive developments all around. >> a-rod has a lot of money. we're going to keep hearing about this in court. >> giving students a chance at a better life. bangladesh faces a problem of a large number of kids dropping out. how schools are working to get them back in the classroom.

al jazeera america.

>> good morning, welcome back to aljazeera mark. i'm stephanie sy. >> i'm richelle carey. we'll show you a new school system in bangladesh taking a unique approach to tackle students dropping out of school. >> first let's get a look at potential snow and rain across the u.s. today.

meteorologist dave warren is back. >> a little snow in south dakota right now picking up here. it's a quick moving storm out of the north dumping light know from the northwest to the southeast. winter weather advisory in effect for that reason. wind advisories in effect in montana and wyoming. light snow, once it moves into the warmer air, we'll see rain, heavier when the storm intensifies throughout the day today and overnight tonight. >> in bangladesh, almost half of students do not finish middle school. a new school system with innovative classes is trying to get them back into the classroom. >> these kids look like regular students attending a typical game class but each is a success story. every child here is a former dropout. today, the students in the basic school system, a network of schools in villages across

bangladesh tries to fight the countries dropout problem. almost 40% of students in bangladesh don't finish school. the student who leads the exes session was once one of them. >> my father died and we had to come back to the village and i had to stop going to school. two years later, a teacher found me and convinced my mother to send me to the school. >> she says her special honor to get married but she wants to finish her to do. the teachers know in order to keep students like her from dropping out again, they need to offer more than other schools. they combine general education with vocational training. >> the children who drop out of schools are you believe from poor families. they don't have the financial support to complete a regular education, consisting only of regular classes. >> there's over .500 of these

schools. teaching 1800 students across the country. they learn general education subjects but also technical skills such as mushroom farming, poultry farming, garment work and car pent arery. >> the education they receive is giving these children the confidence they need to defy rigged social questions. a carpentry student, she says she can do any jobs the boys can. >> of course there will be social pressure, saying look at this girl doing men's work. my parents will say she's behaving like a man and tell me to stop, but i'm not going to listen to them. >> bangladesh still has a long way to go in educating all its children. these schools for dropouts playing their part in helping the country do that. >> bangladesh spends 2.4% of its national revenues on primary education, the lowest amount in

south asia. >> at the end of our second hour, stephanie has a look at what we're following this morning. >> the funeral of former prime minister ariel sharon began earlier this hour following a tate ceremony attended by dignitaries from around the world. >> world powers reached a nuclear deal with iran, they will roll back production next week and allow the united nations access to nuclear facilities for six months. >> protestors are trying to shut down the major roads in bangkok to disrupt the major elections in thailand, trying to block key government figures inside their homes. i'm back with you in just two and a half minutes. thanks for watching. >> next we consider sacrifice and whether saving some members of endangered species is worth

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>> former israeli prime minister ariel sharon laid to rest this morning, the man considered a military hero by some and a monster by others, given a full military funeral. >> negotiators are putting the finishing touches on an agreement to iran to freeze much of its nuclear program for relief from economic sanctions. >> bringing bangkok to a stand till. thousands of protestors taking to the streets of thailand protesting upcoming elections and calling for the prime minister to resign. >> a really rough landing, we

were moving pretty close as we were landing, because the runway got too horse for the plane. >> a major mistake for southwest airlines. the investigate into how a flight landed at the wrong airport. tha>> are good morning, welcomeo aljazeera. foreign dignitaries from around the world are in israeli today to say four well to former prime minister sharon. you are looking at live pictures where the funeral service has begun. the former leader passed away at the age of 85 after spending eight years in a coma. he was honored earlier today in jerusalem during a state ceremony. the memorial was attended by currently israeli prime minister

netanyahu, a one time political foe and vice president biden calling him a complex man who always put his country first. >> mr. sharon was not only loved by the jewish people, he not only loved them and the jewish people, but he loved the land of israeli. >> sharon's body will be buried in a military style ceremony at a sycamore ranch in southern israeli. we are outside his home in southern israeli. mourners have gathered for the burial. how would you describe the scene? >> well, the scene is very somber. you can probably hear behind me a lot of prayers, a lot of jewish prayers, the chief rabbi for the military just delivering a prayer about god's mercy and hopefully sharon's soul will go to heaven. that's the kind of thing you are

hearing. you can hear some of the songs now you. heard joe biden talk about this and a lot of people who have been talking today about sharon are saying the same thing. he loved this lab. he loved this land in particular, his ranch that heed had for decades and that when the israeli state asked his family where he wanted to be buried, the family said don't bur him in jerusalem, bury him here. his wife is buried on that hill behind me and sharon always wanted to be buried next to her on this land, on this ranch. >> speaking of that land, sharon's farm is just a few miles from the gaza strip. does this bring security issues to the fore? >> absolutely. just like sharon's entire life, there's always a battle over land. he truly believed that israeli deserved much of the land it has now in israeli and the palestinian west bank. he fought for it ruthlessly for

decades. we're only eight miles from the border of the gas mistake strip, that means we are within rocket range of militants who have fired rockets into israeli. that means the iron military have deployed an iron dome, an anti rocket missile battery that we see behind us. 800 police and court officials, and on every hill around me, there are soldiers actually guarding this funeral. the israeli military says we're on a heightened alert but don't expect a challenge today. >> sharon is an incredibly polarizing figure in that region. what has been the reaction of palestinians to his death? >> i think it's safe to say that he is polarizing in israel but truly devise i have when you talk about the israeli-palestinian conflict.

some say he represents the symbol of cruelty, while shcall him the pillar of israeli strength. they cite examples, in the 1950's, sharon led a unit of elite commandos and they created the reputation for ruthless reprisal. after a couple palestinian militants killed, that unit went into a town and laid siege to that town and killed 67 civillens, mostly women and children. palestinians cite that example and southern lebanon when sharon was minister of defense, israeli military rolled into outern lebanon, thousands of palestinians were killed in that offensive. right at the end of that offensive, sharon stood back while militias he was allied with went into refugee catches and slaughtered hundreds of thousands of palestinians, so a lot of people here not celebrating this man, not calling him a war hero as many

israelis call him, instead a war criminal. >> reporting from outside sharon's ranch in southern israel, nick, thank you. >> at the age of 13, he joined the underground paramilitary force. six years later in 1948, he fought in the battle for jerusalem. in 1967, he commanded an armored division during the six day war against egypt, jordan and syria. during the yom kippur war, it turned the fighting. he was appointed the defense minister in 1981. just in time for strehl to invade lebanon the following year. a commission indirectly found the israeli defense force responsible for a massacre of palestinian civilians, eventually leading to a reluctant esignation. in 2001, he won a landslide victory to become israel's

11th prime minister. in 2005, he ordered the withdrawal of the israeli military along with settlers from the gaza strip as part of a disengagement plan. in january, 2006, he suffered a massive stroke, forcing a medically induced coma that he has been in since. >> the french military is trying to broker a truce in the central african republic just days after the president of the country resigned and went into compile. rival militia men laid down arms and embraced each other. talks to find a new leader are set for today. according to the red cross, widespread looting over the weekend left at least 13 dead. mosques, muslim owned shops and homes were attacked by christian rivals. united nations called for calm and has stepped up flights for foreigners wanting to leave. >> the possibility of organizing cease fires in specific parts of

syria are being talked at a meeting now, trying to convince rebels to take part in the talks set to take place in 10 days in geneva. they insist they will not include assad's regime in any future government. we are joined from paris. phil, these delegates will also decide iran's role in the effort to end the syrian war. let's listen in to what john kerry said. >> a country that is supporting this other organization, hezbollah, has had a long term relationship with assad and with syria has a huge ability to be able to have an impact if they want to have the right impact. the right impact, it has been decided by many nations, is to implement the geneva one communique. >> so, phil, just two days ago, a senior state official said

iran will not be attending the talks in geneva. could this international pressure change that? >> certainly that's what the russian minister would like to see happen. we heard from the u.n. special envoy, and he indicated that there is the possibility of iran coming to the talks in switzerland, sitting around the table with representatives of the government in damascus as well as opposition members. for his par, secretary of state john kerry says if practicing matically they com to be part of the solution, and that primarily is they agree to the so-called geneva one document, that if iran comes to be productive that that is a possibility, as well.

the window is open, the possibility there, but still very contentious issue and until we hear a little more from all the players involved and that's washington, moscow, the friends of syria, the syrian opposition, damascus and tehran, a lot of people in that mix there, we won't know whether or not there be an a representative from iran there. there's a lot going on in paris, difficult issues hashed out to end the blood shed, but clearly, this is a very difficult task. >> iran's participation would certainly change the dynamic of those talks. fill ittner for us in paris, thank you. >> the u.s. has spent $50 billion funding security forces in afghanistan, but after 12 years in the country, hundreds of millions of dollars are unaccounted for. one group falling between the cracks is the afghan police

working without pay since october. afghan officials have the money to pay them but missed deadlines for processing paperwork. they face a possibility of full withdrawal by international forces by the end of the 2014. >> after a week of snow and cold, another storm is working across the country. for more, let's bring in meteorologist dave warren. i know, don't shoot the messenger, right? >> right. there's warm air ahead of the storm and cold air behind it. the temperatures will be dropping once we get rid of the rain. the rain has not made it yet to the northeast. it will eventually, overnight later today and overnight tonight. meantime, the temperatures continue to warm up and this is a problem because of all the ice formed on the rivers could melt, you get flooding above an ice jam and flash flooding once that ice mets. a number of creeks and rivers seeing flood warnings and watches for that reason.

we have that ice warming could melt or cause flooding on the rivers and creeks here. now, here's all the rain across the southeast, and that front approaching from the west. that behind it is some light snow, just light snow with this colder air coming in. that not cold, frigid air, but you will notice a drop in temperatures from the northern plains today. before that cold air makes it, here'sed rain coming in southeast today, overnight tonight along the mid atlantic states. by tomorrow, the rain's gone, but there's that cold air. no rain across the southwest, just warmer temperatures and dry weather. these were satellite plus the radar shows no rain expected. the draw continues there. we desperately need that moisture across the southwest. stephanie. >> thank you. >> hundreds of thousands of people in west virginia are waking up to their fifth day without clean tap water. a chemical spill last week

tainted the tap water supply across the state. jonathan martin joins us live from downtown charleston in west virginia. good morning. dew we have any idea when people can tart drinking from their taps again? >> good morning, stephanie. the answer to that, no, we really just don't know at this point. we did hear from west virginia's governor and he said they've done 100 tests on the water recently. he he says the results are encouraging, trending in the right direction, the chemical level is declining. however, he stopped short of saying that people could start using their water today or tomorrow. if there's good news, there's lots of bottled water for people to pick up. there are a number of tankers providing water, like the one behind me. >> people are getting frustrated and getting inconvenienced. >> elizabeth and her daughter, dora haven't showered in three days. a case of bottled water is the

only three water they have i don't we've been heating up water, and washing off with like we're camping. really, it's very much like going camping. you know, when you go camping, you don't have a shower. >> for a fourth day, nearly thee hundred thousand west virginians are being told not to use tap water. nine counties are under a state of emergency after a chemical spill in the elk river thursday. >> the biggest frustration is everyone wants to know when. when will we have water, what do we do when the water comes back. >> there is no clear time line for what the tap water will be safe to use. the latest results show the levels of the chemical are declining and undetectable in some areas. >> i believe we're at a point where we can see light at the end of the tunnel. >> wedge verge's governor says when the ban is lifted, it will

be in phases. there is a 24 hour hot line and interactive on line map to find out when their neighborhood is in the clear. fema is trucking in cases of bottled water. elizabeth knows she's fortunate. as a librarian, she's able to work. >> i'm more concerned about the long term ripple effects for the lives of people i know who ho this is a big deal. it's hurting their businesses, or they work part time. >> meantime, federal investigators continue looking into the company responsible for the chemical spill, freedom industries. they want to know how the chemical got out of their storage tanks. they want to know why it took so long to notify authorities. neighbors, residents rued the chemical spill thursday morning,

but it was four hours later that the company actually notified the department of environmental protection. they want to know why was there that delay. we'll hopefully get that answer soon. >> four hours for the chemical spill. jonathan martin joining us live from charleston, west virginia, thank you. hammering out a nuclear deal, the politics behind it. >> preparing to move the costa concordia. >> bringing traffic to a halt in bangkok. >> the ceremony for former prime minister ariel sharon is continuing in southern israel.

activists show the

>> good morning, welcome back to aljazeera america. i'm stephanie sy. just ahead, what it took for the u.s. and iran and five super powers to reach a nuclear agreement. >> first, lets look at

temperatures across the nation today. dave. >> most likely warmer temperatures coming off that cold week last week, it's tough to get any colder, but the temperatures are warming. memphis, 52, temperatures climbing above 50 degrees, new york at 40, climbing into the mid to low 50's this afternoon. 31 in philadelphia. it will warm here, but one place it's getting colder is behind know pushing so north dakota, south dakota. twenty in minneapolis today, the cold air moves south and eventually spreads east, so the warm up we see today will not stick around for long. colder weather will return. >> iran and six word powers have put the final touches ohen a temporary deal that freezes much of iran's nuclear program. that here's the agreement, starting january 20, tehran

agreed to roll back nuclear production. over next six muts, the united nations will have full access to it's nuclear facilities. a permanent deal will be finalized six months from now. in return, iran will get relief from crippling economic sanctions, between $6 billion and seven monday. we have more on the deal. >> this was the first step, taken in november, agreeing to slow iran's nuclear program. now the next step, january 20, iran's leaders will take action. on that day, they promise to enrich uranium to 5%, dismantle stockpile of 20% enriched uranium and allow for increased inspections. they get release on the oil and gold industry and parts for cars and airplanes. an estimated $60 billion to

$7 billion will be but the back into their economy while they try to work out a long term deal. from the powerful to the people on the streets, skepticism about the future. >> it is not easy to be optimistic. we should wait and see what that is. only time will tell whether the results will finally result in conclusion. >> we are very clear-eyed about the even greater challenges that we face in negotiating a comprehensive agreement. we understand it's going to be a tough negotiation, and we are very clear about what will be required in order to be able to guarantee to the international community that this is a peaceful program. >> the u.s. promised no new sanctions while they talk. some don't agree, threatening new sanctions on iran which will be implemented if they feel iran

isn't living u up to the agreement. the white house said that will end the talks and threaten to veto. pone they didn't are work to go override it. the first and second steps taken, it could be the third. >> the sanction relief money will be paid out in 180 day installments, the first payment of $550 million will be paid at the beginning of february, the payments would stop if iran vitals the accord. the nuclear deal with iran, we are joined by director of policy and government affairs, a former foreign policy advisor and mr. reuben joins us from washington. halt in enrichment and diluting

uranium to 20%, is it a substantial step to prevent iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. >> this is a a good first step and very good deal for international community to build confidence to be sure in the next phase, the comprehensive investigation that the type of nuclear program iran has, the strengths around it, verification measures in place are addressed to give confidence to the international community that it does not have a nuclear weapon, is not going to build one and prevented from doing so if they make a bulk toward that end. the first step is to get to that comprehensive negotiation and to make sure iran is not advancing their program. that's been achieved. >> from early reaction, it doesn't seem this deal was enough for scenics in washington still threatening sanctions. what will it take to believe that iran is really willing to freeze its program?

>> there are only three choices right now before us. there's either a deal which is verifiable that insures through peaceful means iran does not have a nuclear weapon. there's no deal, iran could be con strained, currently is constrained, will be during the six month period. why let that constraint go? that is the other option. the third option is one where without constraint, iran could march forward and lead to military conflict. the naysayers have reason to have doubt. there's an important level of verification that needs to take place to ensure that iran is complying, but they also need to look at the alternatives. in these three scenarios, they need to move forward. >> the u.s. was said: what are

the challenges ahead for a more long term deal? >> there are challenges that the negotiating table and there are challenges at the political environment. at the negotiating table, several core elements are going to be discussed and this is where it will be very difficult. we have to remember that these elements, such as the plutonium production facility, the number of centrifuges, the facility that is iran has constructed, these have taken decades to build. at the same time, the international community has taken decades to build its sanction program and strong pressure that has pushed iran to come to the table to seek relief. these are very difficult program to say untangle on both sides of the equation and at the same time to get iran to agree to the kinds of constraints the international community needs. this is all very complex. we know the issues, the

negotiators are clear-eyed, they have a roadmap now. they have an end state, which is a peaceful iranian nuclear program. that gives confidence that negotiating they will tackle the tough issues in a concrete way. we are not talking about uncertainties. we know the issues. >> when it comes to the diplomatic side of things, i know you talked about the challenges for both administrations domestically, what is the next step toward a long term agreement? >> it appears that the p5 plus one, the six powers negotiating with iran will be coming back relatively soon to begin the comprehensive negotiations. the six month window has been described in the first step. i'd be surprised if they want to use all six months. they do understand the politics in iran, washington and elsewhere are very, very tough on this issue, that there will be a lot of questions. as the negotiation unfolds, the anyway sayers and questioners

will continue to push these negotiators to make arguments at the table that may be very difficult to achieve. so all of this is happening in the dynamic process and we're going to see diplomats moving very quickly, i'm sure to this comprehensive period. >> for a lot of people who cover this race, pretty unbelievable that we got to building point. joe reuben, thanks for joining us. >> clashes have broken out in the egyptian capital just days before voters head to the polls. sunday, students supporting ousted president mohamed morsi battled court forces at cairo university. they hurled rocks and molotov com tails at police who responded by firing tear bass into the crowd. the unrest comes two days before a vote on a draft constitution for the country. >> five aljazeera journalists are detained but not charged,

accused of joining a terrorist group. aljazeera says the allegations are fabry kayed and demand their release. >> three others have been detained for five months. >> we've got breaking news, a huge deal in the liquor industry, beam, maker of jim beam bourbon is being both by suytori holdings from japan. beam proses name brandies. >> don't expect to see any big moves in stocks this year cording to some watchers. >> the environment is going to

be good so that you don't need to be depressed, but don't get sloppy in terms of in vexes. stick with quality in terms of stocks and bonds. if you're disciplined, you'll do better than cash on the money markets. >> the dow starts at 16,437. >> that nuclear deal with iran, driving oil prices lower. crude down more than three quarters of a percent and 92 dollars a barrel on that anticipation of increased supply from iran. international restrictions on iranian oil would be lifted. >> remembering former prime minister ariel sharon, looking

back on his legacy as he is laid to rest. >> harsh words for tougher talking new jersey governor. why the presidential candidate could be impeached over a traffic jam scandal. >> as the auto show opens in detroit, we'll look at how the automakers have bounced back from near bankruptcy. >> despite bombshell claims, alex rodriguez still plans on taking his swings at the legal system i don't here's a live look at the proceedings in the burial ceremony for former israeli prime minister ariel sharon.

al jazeera america gives you the total news experience anytime, anywhere. more on every screen. digital, mobile, social. visit aljazeera.com. follow @ajam on twitter. and like aljazeera america on facebook for more stories, more access, more conversations. so you don't just stay on top of the news, go deeper and get more perspectives on every issue. al jazeera america.

>> new jersey governor chris christie marathon apologies last week have done little to stop controversy in controversy. tracy p was happening, but also on his political future. >> in washington, for governor chris kiss tee, it's republicans to the rescue. >> he says he didn't know. i think it's pretty darn credible. >> thousands and thousands of documents have been revealed, and not one single link to chris christie has been found. >> even the democratic christie staff allegedly targeted said he believes the governor. >> i take him at his word. this is just a lot of stuff out

there, though. >> expect more documents subpoenaed this week. the head of the state committee that's investigating the bridge traffic jam isn't buying right this senior aid who was with him that day who sent the order neve once communicated with him? it's unbelievable. >> whether bridge gate throws a wrench in a possible presidential run in 2016 is still unknown. one possible opponent refused to speculate. >> i think it would be a mistake for me and others like me to comment on this. >> a top republican believes christie can survive this. >> i think he can now move on as long tomorrow night. >> all right, we'll be listening. thanks, tracy. >> another bombshell, federal officials are investigating

whether governor christie used super storm sandy relieve funds for tourism. pink palone said he requested the investigation last august. he pushed for the investigation after an initial review concluded that there was enough evidence of improper use of federal funds. the new jersey congressman said the audit will take several months. >> the final phase of a massive operation to move the casta concordia has begun to tow it away starting in june. it was two years ago today that it hit rocks and partially capsized, killing 32 people. it was hauled upright, but it still rests where it went down. this is the world's largest and most expensive maritime salvage operation. >> a plane landed on the wrong runway at the wrong airport.

the southwest flight out of chicago came dangerously close to sliding off the short runway. this is the second time in two months a plane has landed in the wrong place. >> you could feel something was wrong. >> the southwest jet did something wrong when it landed at a tiny downtown airport. >> we hit the runway really hard and really fast. we stand and then all of a sudden, you just smelled like rubber, really strong, like through the whole cabin. we all looked at each other like something is not right. >> they came on and said that we had lamed at the wrong runway. >> the wrong runway by about seven miles. the right runway where the chicago southwest flight was supposed to land is at the nearby branson airport, a much larger facility with a longer runway, by about 3,000 feet. a passenger onboard was recording as the pilot apologized. >> rest assured that we're safe and sound here, and people know

we're here. >> 124 passengers and five crew members were on the plane. no one was hurt. the plane came close to tumbling off a steep drop off down an embankment and on to a highway. >> we were very lucky, considering there was a cliff at the end of the runway. >> this is the second plane in two months to land at the wrong airport. back in november, another jumbo jet, a bowing 747 dream lifter headed or are for an air force base in kansas landed at a smaller airport nine miles from the base. no passengers were onboard. the jets were carrying parts to a facility that makes planes near the base. that plane was towed to the beginning of the runway and had just enough space to take off the next day. the southwest plane from sunday may not be as fortunate since the plane is far too big to get off the ground on such a small runway. >> airport officials do not know

how they will get the plane back to a commercial airport to get back in service. military service said back in november that newer pilots tend to make this kind of mistake especially at night, confusing one runway with another. in both cases, the runways were fewer than 10 miles apart. aljazeera, new york. >> the smaller county airport doesn't normally handle big jets. authorities have launched an investigation into the airport mix up. as for the passengers, they took shuttle buses to the right airport. >> israelis are paying final respects to former prime minister ariel sharon. he was honored earlier in jerusalem during a state ceremony outside the israeli parliament employee foreign dignitaries from around the world attended the event including vice president joe biden and british former prime minister tony blare. >> a country tested as much as

israel, when losing a man like prime minister sharon, it doesn't feel like the loss of a leader, it fees like the death in the family. >> he passed away saturday. he was 85. he will be buried this morning with full military honors at his ranch in southern israel. while many in israel are mourning his passing, he left a mixed legacy in the middle east especially among palestinians. dr. margudi is it is former palestinian information minister and joins us. thanks for joining us, first of all. what kind of reaction are you seeing in the palestinian territories to mr. sharon's death? there isn't much reaction, actually, and people understand that there should be no gloating over the death of anybody, but

at the same time, i don't think that unfortunately mr. sharon, i don't think has left any good memories with palestinians. the opposite. he's considered by the vast majority as a war criminal who conducted several massacres against the palestinian population starting in the 1950's for which he was found responsible even by israeli courts for the death and assassination of thousands of palestinians at that time. that he's well known to be the father of the settlement of illegal activities which have been the concept that is eating up the possibility of two state solution and peace based on two state solution. he was the one who undermined and destroyed the peace process when he visited promoting a second war and occupied all the palestinian authority areas. in every aspect of daily life,

unfortunately, all the memories are not good ones and because this man did not know how to deal with palestinians except through military force and oppression and killing, that's what many israeli reporters are talking about today. >> in 2005, though, prime minister sharon ordered the withdrawal of settlements from gaza. can't you say that was an overture towards peace at least at the end? >> not really. i think mr. sharon was a shrewd strategist who understand at the end of his life that the project is not working, so his way of dealing with that was to try to separate gaza completely from the west bank. he never with drew from the gaza strip, he just reorganized the occupation, and all the settlers that were removed from gaza were put again in the west bank and

new settlements. gaza is still seize'd by the israel army, and in reality, this was a strategic move to get rid of one third of the demographic factor, 1.7 million palestinians by getting rid of 1.3% of the land of historic palestine but making sure or he tried to be sure that this way he will kill the ideal palestinian state hood by separating from west bank and establishing the -- >> prime minister sharon really wanted to secure israel, that was his main goal. there were continuing attacks launched from the occupied territory, so didn't he have some reason to want to consolidate the settlements in

the west bank? >> he was wrong, because he thought that security can be achieved only by oppression and military force. this is not for security, pry, it became clear it was for land appropriation and annexation. the only way to achieve security and that's why we hope to see new leaders in deal, young leaders who believe and understand that our non-violent resistance to the struggle and who could understand our masses, that when we struggle non-violently for peaceful resolution and for our rights, we are doing that to liberate and free not only the palestinian people, but also the israelis themselves. what we want to see is israel to understand that the freedom of israel will not be achieved as

long as we, the palestinians are not free. >> sharon famous for saying an olive branch in one hand, a freedom fighters gun in the other. we appreciate your perspective today. >> demonstrators have been setting up stages in several major bangkok intersections. rallies will be held at these seven that sites, blocking large parts of the city. protestors are also targeting the government complex. >> the detroit auto show announced its car of the we're, the new chevrolet voluntary coat stingray. g.m. swept the awards for the first time since 2007. we are at the detroit auto show now. what's the buzz there?

>> there really is a sense of excitement here in detroit when the recession hit back in 2009, the american auto industry was hit especially hard. as one otherwiser put it, he said this auto show will reflect the resurgence. >> u.s. auto sales have rebounded, plants are hiring again, and the global appeal of north american made cars is growing. the u.s. auto industry is riding high. last year, automakers exported more vehicles than ever, 2 million, and 15.6 million vehicles were sold in the u.s. these figures are a vast improvement compared to just four years ago when the recession hit. vehicle sales dropped to 10.4 million. >> the auto industry has come back to fight another day. >> dr. john taylor is a business professor in detroit. he recalls the days of 2009,

when general motors, cries her and ford were running on empty. >> it was quite a mini depression. >> vehicle sales plummeted. the u.s. government under the obama administration bailed out both g.m. and chrysler and ford found financial relief in federal loans. >> that had to happen to help extricate themselves from some had of the problems and the problems were made on both sides. they were made by management and they were made by union organizations. >> next, major restructuring, which included job losses, plant closures and union concessions. gone were the days of generous health benefits and the $25 an hour factory job. >> i think people may have at the time thought it might be the end, peel on the street, people in the industry knew that there would be another day. >> i think it's a comebackor, just the beginning. >> in a dazzling display of hot wheels and new innovations, the auto show is kicking off its

25th year in detroit. >> today's marketplace is a lot different from when we were young. traditionally, i grew up with the big three, ford, g.m. and chris leer. you look around the floor here, and there's hyundai, mercedes, toyota, honda. all of these brands are really american brands now. this is a global marketplace. >> he says there's a new energy driving this year's event. >> the automakers wouldn't be investing in the kind of money to build any of these exhibits were the business not there, and you can feel the confidence. you can feel the optimism. it's actually a very, verifying time. >> they are just now back on the road to recovery, but in a short time, sufficient a you the toe industry has traveled far. >> we're expected to see quite a few concept vehicles overall. there will be 45 cars and trucks making their worldwide debut.

>> cool. reporting from detroit, thanks bisi. ali velshi will be talking to ford c.e.o., and you can see that right here on aljazeera america at 7:00 p.m. >> there are more twists and turns surrounding the suspension of alex rodriguez this morning. john henry smith is here with with the latest revelations. good morning. >> good morning, stephanie. alex rodriguez not going away quiet hi, expected today to file an appeal of his historic 162 game suspension in federal court, this despite the fact that 162 games is down prom the original 211 game suspension baseball wanted to give him. he gets the mark down thanks to an arbitrators ruling. he denies he ever used performance enhancing drugs but in a 60 minutes interview, bio genesis founder bosch refutes that, saying he personal leinjected rodriguez because rodriguez was too scared of

needles to do it himself. bosch also says that alex rodriguez would take testosterone gummy lozenges before games. >> you would put one of these in his mouth probably 10 or 15 minutes before game time or as soon as he went into the field. a player could take it right before game time and by the time they get back into the locker room after the game, and there was any possibility of testing, they would test negative, they would test clean. >> did rodriguez unwittingly take things like this? bosch told 60 minutes that: >> also appearing in the 60 minutes piece was mlb

commissioner bud selig as well as chief operating officer. that has drown strong criticism from the mlb players association. in a statement they said: >> that arbitrator they referred to is rob manfred. rodriguezs at the same time that baseball has disregarded facts address law in this case, the league says in part:

>> for on the field news, we turn to the nfl. next week's conference championship matchups are set, new england will travel to denver, that means tom brady and the patriots will meet peyton manning for the third time. the 49ers travel to seattle to face their bitter rival for the third time this season. that's your look at sports this hour. >> getting a fresh start. >> from living the life that i live, i thought by now, i should be dead. >> a unique business that's giving troubled women a second chance at life.

al jazeera america.

>> welcome back to aljazeera america. just ahead, a non-profit helping women turn their lives around

for two decades, but first let's look at where rain and snow may fall across the country. >> a little snow across the northern plains, light snow in north dakota and south dakota will move to the southeast, just light know expected. this is a quick moving steal, winter weather advisory is issued along that path. wind advisories and warnings behind that storm, because the wind will tart to pick up as the storm intensifies. there's the snow, no rain with this. we will see rain becoming heavy across the southeast and all the way you the east coast. the storm will intense fee and bring warm air with it. this is all rain along the coast today and mountains of west virginia seeing that rain today. >> a national non-profit is helping women turn their lives around. not only rehabilitation, but

also employment. >> this looks hike a typical coffee shop on the corner, but when you talk to the women behind the counter, you realize it's different. that. >> from living the life that i live, i thought by now i should be dead. >> it's been a long, agonizing road for arletha to stay clean and sober. her trips to rehab nerve word. for most of her life, she was selling her body, even with two kids at home. >> when i hit the treats, i started using genuine started walking all hours of the night, jumping in and out of cars with men i didn't know, prostituting my body, just getting high. >> she's sober and now has a job. for almost 20 years, this non-profit founded by an episcopalian priest has all been done through private grants and donations. it receives no government

assistance. the retable talking about program has given her the hope and tools she needs to stay clean. she also learned that she was not alone. >> they are saying how they been raped, molested, how god brought them through, how they can live, laugh, love again and that there is hope. >> for more than a dozen years, graduates have been making bat and body work products by hand. they are sold all over the country. the cafe is the newest venture p.m. from the chairs to the desk to the wood, everything is donated. she never thought she'd make it and is now the general manager. >> i know that today i can do this. i know that i can stay clean and sober. in my heart, i have no reason to go backwards, and all i can say is that i can thank god, because it was by his amazing grace that i am sitting here. >> there has been a string of firsts for her. she and her daughter just moved

into their first apartment. >> feels good to be back in a relationship with my daughter. >> she has a boyfriend. they hope to get married someday. she'll always have the support group at thistl had e farms. >> it also offers access to dentists and mental health services. >> pope francis has chosen 19 new cardinals, some from developing anywayses, in line with his belief that the church must pay attention to the poor. asia, two trick ken countries and haiti are where the priests were chosen. have a good morning.

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